We already had Life Direct's sloth and Speight's ginger bear, and now the AA has introduced a pair of yellow sheep—via a life insurance spot by Rainger & Rolfe—to the growing catalgoue of animals in Kiwi advertising.

Yesterday marked the second anniversary of fuel-saving discount scheme AA Smartfuel, which has thus far accumulated over 1.6 million unique registered cardholders since its inception in 2011. PLUS: read about comedian Urzila Carlson's involvement with the programme.

With fewer competitors, a new agency, the departure of some senior staff, a range of marketing initiatives and a new brand campaign, it was a big year for Westpac. Senior brand manager Michael Healy shares his thoughts.

Social scoreboard

Zavy and StopPress have worked together to create a scoreboard that compares how the top 25 traditional media advertising spenders in New Zealand have performed on social media over the past 30 days, updated in real time.

Once again, online advertising continued its steady rise in New Zealand in 2012, hitting its high water mark in the last quarter. And as the head of Yahoo! New Zealand (which recently launched its year-in-the-making new homepage and mobile site) and the new chair of the local Internet Advertising Bureau, Laura Maxwell-Hansen is well placed to see where it's heading next. Here's her take on 2012.

The old adage says reputations take a lifetime to build and only 15 minutes to destroy. And with the emergence of social media and online reviews, never has this saying rung truer for our travel and hospitality industries.

There's been plenty of discussion about the Major Events Management Act (MEMA) and the steps being taken by organisers to limit so-called ambush marketing during the upcoming 'Big Rugby Event'. Some say the rules are too draconian and kowtow to the corporates, while others believe they're fair enough because they aim to protect the sizable investment of the Rugby World Cup's official sponsors. Urgent Courier's Mobile AdVert has already come under fire from OMANZ for a possible breach. And we've found a campaign on AA's Bookabach.co.nz that looks like it's in a very similar boat.

Job of the Week

Latest comments

John

Kia Ora Davey. I appreciate your lengthy discussion but the time has come to object to the fact you are putting words in my mouth, if you pardon the pun. You have gone to the trouble of linking me details ...

Hi John, so what you're saying is, in order to know what people's favourite ad's are, they asked the open-ended question "what is your favourite ad on TV at the moment?" and this is bad because someone else asked this ...

G’day David. Yes, I had a read prior and you would find the open ended methodology and sample size are exactly the same. Only different is this sample excludes 60+ years and use an outsourced panel. Personally I feel over ...

Genius From Elsewhere

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A Havard student, a Palestinian from Lebanon, says he was barred from entering the United States due to his friends’ social media posts. Ismail Ajjawi, 17, says a custom agent took issue with posts written by others.

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YouTube is experimenting with an algorithm change to reduce the spread of what it calls “borderline content” in the UK, after a similar trial in the US resulted in a substantial drop in views. According to chief executive, Susan Wojcicki, the move is intended to give quality content “more of a chance to shine” and has the effect of reducing views from recommendations by 50 percent.

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A social media strategist has written an open letter to the Australian advertising and media industries. Amber Robinson says talking about mental health is no longer enough, it’s time to take responsibility.

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The latest campaign from Doritos tries to see how far the snack’s brand awareness can go without overt branding. Banking on the iconic status of both its product and packaging, the chip brand has removed its name and logo entirely reports Adweek.

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Facebook is tightening its rules around political advertising ahead of the 2020 U.S. presidential elections, an acknowledgement of previous misuse reports Fortune. The changes include a tightened verification process that will require anyone wanting to run ads pertaining to elections, politics or big social issues like guns and immigration to confirm their identity and prove they are in the U.S.

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Why we like it: An intriguing campaign that forced viewers to give a shit from sheer confusion. Fe-Cal Kids ran as an online stunt by Dettol cleaning company and FCB. Getting the help of local influencers to push out its brand over social, people were quick to point out the closeness of Fe-Cal and fecal. The confusion as to why a kids clothing company was named after bodily extractions was quickly uncovered, with Dettol later confirming on the Fe-Cal page that it was all a hoax. The hoax was to show that 78 percent of clothes tested straight from the washing machine contained traces of live fecal bacteria. Nasty.

Who's it for: Pepsi Max for The All Blacks

Why we like it: There is nothing we like more than seeing a group of grandmothers roasting our national team for wearing their shirts to tight. Pepsi Max, the official soft drink of the All Blacks, used the three women to promote 'No Sugar Coaching' a nice way of saying 'insulting', which we are completely game for. The three players struggle to answer the 'tough' questions by the women, with the unscripted answers from the boys adding some humour to the tense situation.

Who's it for: Merdian for Garage Project

Why we like it: The collaboration between Garage Project brewery and Meridian – who only generate electricity from 100 percent renewable resources – is the first time that the certified renewable energy mark has been made available in New Zealand. The fun two-minute-long clip battles against the winds of Wellington to show the story behind the new beer. The picturesque landscape paired with Garage Project's casual style makes for an unexpected yet successful collaboration.

Who's it for: Māori Language Commission by Augusto

Why we like it: Even though Cocka Tumeke is a sweet little bird with dead eyes, he is hawking a good lesson in this campaign; that if a native Australian feather duster of a bird can pick up some te reo Māori, then so can our Kiwis. Cocka Tumeke in the campaign dances around not overly paying attention to what's happening around him, proving that the challenge should be fairly simple. The nonchalant bird is supported by a cheeky narration, with an attempt of banter that the bird is just not into. Overall, a fun look at a very important issue.